b'Medicine & ResearchBy Megan WeigelMost people living with MS have heard of postgraduate fellowship or residency program,complementaryandalternativemedicine, or a masters program. The practitioner willcommonly referred to as CAM. In fact, 30-80 continue to assess your health and wellnesspercent of people living with MS use some form according to the conventional medical paradigm,of it. The most commonly used types of CAM, but will also assess in greater detail your medicalaccording to a 2012 survey, are taking natural history from birth; exposures to medicationsproducts, breathing techniques, yoga, Tai chi, and environmental toxins; nutrition, exercise,and mindfulness. Complementary medicine and sleep histories; and spiritual beliefs andincludesnonmainstreamhealthpractices practices. Recommendations for care wouldused with conventional medicine, for example include evidenced-based care plans accordingseeing an acupuncture physician for pain and to your medical diagnoses, but also options toyour MS provider for your MS care. Alternative include nutrition changes, mindfulness practices,medicine occurs when nonmainstream supplements/botanicals, nontraditionalpractices are used instead of conventional diagnostics, and referrals to appropriate CAMmedicine, for example, deciding to stop seeing providers. Many IM practitioners have additionalyour MS provider and instead follow a special training in yoga, aromatherapy, acupressure,diet and get bee sting therapy. medical acupuncture, Tai chi, mindfulness/I start with these denitions because many meditation, homeopathy, and/or herbology,assume Integrative Medicine is CAM, and it and will use those in their practices whereis not. Rakel and Weil dene IM as a practice of appropriate. An IM practitioner may have amedicine that focuses on the least invasive, strong focus on mind/body/spirit work, or workleast toxic, and least costly methods to help with a health coach to help you meet healthfacilitate health by integrating allopathic and goals.complementary therapies is recommended The importance of vetting an IM providerbased on an understanding of the physical, should be stressed because of what has beenemotional, psychological, and spiritual aspects termed the wellness-industrial complex. Itof the individualand maintains that healing seems that everyone is out to help you getis always possible, even when curing is not. healthy and well. Unfortunately, not all of theseAn IM practitioner has training and businesses know the nuances of living withexperience in conventional medicine, as well MS and understand drug, supplement, andas in IM. This training would come from a disease interactions with their services ormsfocusmagazine.org 10'